Washington,
DC (January 27, 2016) – The National
Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) today asked the US Supreme Court
to overturn a lower court’s decision to let the EPA push ahead with a massively
expensive new regulation that could ultimately be invalidated on constitutional
grounds.

“We believe that the DC Circuit Court failed to
consider the economic and financial damage that the rule sets in motion before
the Supreme Court has a chance to adjudicate the case,” said Karen Harned, Executive Director of the
NFIB Small Business Legal Center.

The DC Circuit Court of Appeals last week refused to
temporarily block implementation of the controversial EPA Clean Power Plan. Under the rule, states are required to shut
down coal-powered electricity producers and replace them with alternative
sources of energy like wind and solar.
NFIB and other business groups, along with nearly two dozen states, have
argued that the EPA doesn’t have authority under the Constitution to impose
economic policies on the states.

“The EPA can begin enforcing the rule even though
it might not survive the constitutional challenge,” said Harned. “But the EPA can do a lot of damage in the
meantime. States will have to start
planning and investing resources now in order to be in compliance. So even if they eventually prevail in the
Supreme Court and the regulation is thrown out, it will be impossible to
recover their investment and nearly impossible to reverse the damage.